


Dragon Days

by The_Captain



Series: The Cons of Being Dovahkiin [1]
Category: Elder Scrolls, Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Genre: Dark Brotherhood - Freeform, Dovahzul, Gen, Helgen, High Hrothgar, Memories, Nightmares, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Skyrim Main Quest, Sovngarde, injuries
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-30
Updated: 2018-01-22
Packaged: 2019-02-24 02:40:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,889
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13204032
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Captain/pseuds/The_Captain
Summary: A series of drabbles and short stories surrounding my Dragonborn, Mera. Most will focus around the main storyline of the game and it's expansions. I'll add tags as needed.





	1. Only Memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Can legends be haunted by the past?

When she thinks on Helgen, all she sees is fire. Fire, burning red and bright, the stench of copper, fresh blood spilling from open wounds and of seared flesh. It’s hard to forget the smell of people burning, harder still to forget their screams.

_“Legends don’t burn down villages.”_

In the following months, his words float through her head whenever she closes her eyes. When she sees the flames.

She’s a legend now too, isn’t she?

It’s hard to feel like one, when she burns herself, when she hears a dragon’s shriek, when she is suddenly and abruptly thrown _back to that day, back to the village, back to the death and destruction and agony and fire, gods the fire..!_

Are legends haunted by the past?

_A dragon (she’s there to see it, but she can hardly believe it) black as the void, night on its wings, body blocking out the very sun. Its roar, the horrid shriek of it, makes her deft and causes her very soul to shake. She felt fear when the executioner held his blade above her head but this - this is something else. Something stronger. His thuum shook the earth._

She wakes up with a gasp, the cold air grating harshly against her throat. Even this close to the fire ( _fire, fire!_ ), it’s hard to feel warm. She checks herself, hands moving over her body in a panic to make sure she’s there, fully there, missing no pieces and leaking no fresh blood ( _gods the stench_ ) and when she realizes she’s whole, and safe within stone walls, she nearly cries out with relief.

“A nightmare, Dovahkiin?” Arngeir’s voice startles her, and she nearly jumps, turning to face the Master with wide eyes. How much of that had he seen? She searches him for any signs of anger, distaste, or, divines forbid, pity, but all she finds is a certain kind of sadness in his eyes. An understanding.

“No,” she replies finally, voice wavering as she sinks back into her borrowed bed. “Just memories.”


	2. Praan, Dovahkiin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Its hard sometimes for Mera to believe that she won.

“ _ Dahmaan _ ,  _ Dovahkiin _ , remember what I have taught you about  _ yol _ .” Paarthurnax’s voice was like gravel, but Mera would not describe it as unpleasant. 

She sat cross legged before the Old One, eyes closed and breathing deeply. Since her return from Sovngarde, she’d returned to the Throat of the World often to meditate with the master. Being there, so high above the rest of Skyrim, helped ease her dragon’s blood as well as her nerves. It was odd, knowing that her job was done. She had fulfilled her destiny. She had faced Alduin, the World Eater, and she had  _ won _ . 

_ Are you sure about that? _ A voice nagged in the back of her mind, causing her to frown. 

She had killed him. She watched as he fell from the sky, crashing into the ground and then…

Disappeared. He vanished, being swallowed by the wind and carried away. She had expected his soul but…

Perhaps it didn’t matter. He was gone from  _ here _ , and that was what counted, right? 

“ _ Dovahkiin _ , you need to  _ morah _ , focus.” 

“I’m trying,” Mera spoke through her teeth. 

“And you  _ funt _ , fail. Tell me, what troubles you?”  

Mera chewed the inside of her lip, worrying the soft flesh as she debating airing her concerns. The old dragon could see right through her, if she lied, so there was no use in trying. She could simply tell him she didn’t want to talk, but…

“It’s Alduin. He…” 

Paarthurnax breathed smoke from his nose, “Still, you are filled with _faas_ , you fear him even after _hin_ _krongrah_. Your victory.”

Mera closed her eyes and nodded, exhaling slowly. 

“ _ Hin onik lost faas _ ,  _ onik ni ov qostiid.  _ Fearing him is wise. Wiser still not to fully trust prophecy so blindly.  _ Nuz,  _ he is gone.  _ Praan, Dovahkiin. _ You have earned your rest.” 

“I didn’t take his soul when he died.” This slight haunted her. If the only way to kill a dragon was to capture it’s soul, how could Alduin truly be dead if she didn’t take his? 

“Hmm,” the Old One hummed, the sound rolling from between his teeth. “Yes, I see how this  _ folooks _ , haunts you still. Alduin was no mere  _ dovah _ . He was the first. It is possible his  _ sil _ was, hm,  _ daal wah un bormah _ . Returned to our father.” 

Mera mulled over the idea. When the sky opened, and Alduin was pulled into it, she had assumed something Divine. Maybe Akatosh had retrieved his first born, in the moment before death, to keep him above in the heavens? It was hard to say. 

“I think I’m done meditating for today,” she sighed, slowly getting to her feet. Her body still ached, and the cold did nothing to help this. She’d recovered, mostly, from her final fight with Alduin, enough to make frequent trips to the Throat of the World, but she still felt weak. 

“Yes, it grows late. Go,  _ praan, Dovahkiin _ . Return should you want to indulge an old  _ dovah _ in  _ tinvaak _ .” 

Mera bowed her head respectfully, rolling her shoulders before gathering her blanket off the ground. If she hurried, she could make it back to High Hrothgar before sundown. Paarthurnax was right, of course, she needed to move past this. She couldn’t hide up on this mountain forever. Sooner or later, she’d need to return to the rest of Skyrim, and she couldn’t let the ghost of the World Eater haunt her there. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment and let me know what you think! I had a lot of fun writing in dovahzul haha


	3. Chapter 3

If she hadn't known the door was there, she would have never found it. 

The black door was more intimidating than Mera had imagined. It emitted a low, almost constant hiss that sounded like a whisper at the back of her neck, making her hairs stand on end. The beast in her howled with discontent, eager to get away, far away, as fast as her legs could take her. 

She took a step forward. 

If Mera thought the hissing was bad, it's real voice was worse. It sent a chill down her spike, filling her core with an icy sense of dread. Was this Sithis? 

“ _ What is the music of life _ ?” 

For a moment, her mind went blank. She was not meant for this, there was no way she could go inside. What would she even say when she entered? The chances of Astrid going along with her plan we're slim. 

But she needed this. Skyrim needed this. 

“Silence, my brother,” she spoke without meaning to, the word leaving her lips hallowly on their own accord. 

“ _ Welcome home. _ ” 

And then it opened, and she stepped inside. 

Her heart fluttered as she walked down the steps. Turn back. One step. Turn back. Two steps. The landing in sight. Turn  _ back..!  _

“Ah, you've finally made it. I trust you found the place alright.” 

Damn. 

“You were right. This really is away from prying eyes, and hidden well.”

“Of course it is,” Astrid purred, her voice alone causing a faint flush to creep up Mera's neck under her armor. “This is the safest place in all of Skyrim. You won't find a more impenetrable fortress.” 

“I can tell,” Mera let her eyes sweep over Astrid. She'd never seen someone more relaxed. How much of that is an act, she wondered. 

“Well, now that you're here, I'd officially like to welcome you to the family. I think you'll find-” 

“I'm not here to join the Dark Brotherhood.” 

Like a switch, Astrid's demenor changed. Tension shifted through her body, subtly, but it was there. A darkness entered her eyes that gave Mera chills. 

“Speak quickly, I will not have a stranger threaten my family.” 

Quickly, Mera raised her hands up slightly, showing no weapon in them. “Peace, Astrid. I mean you and yours no harm. I've come to make a deal.” 

“You want someone killed, you do the black sacrament like the rest of the world. We-” 

“No, not like that. Please, I'm not here to cause trouble,” Mera spoke quickly and took a step backwards, further from Astrid and the blade her hand was itching towards. “I'm not cut out to be an assassin. I'm not in the business of killing people who aren't already killing me. Taking the Arentino contract was an act of mercy. I saw how those orphans we're suffering. I thought of killing her even before the boy hired me too.” 

“What is your point?” Astrid continued to size her up, eyes wandering Mera's body in search of weapons or anything she could he hiding. Mera did her best to look unassuming.

“I would make a terrible assassin,” Mera started, “but that doesn't mean I have nothing to offer you.” 

Astrid's hand tightened on her blade. “Go on.”

“I excel at exploring Skyrim’s overabundance of ruins and caves. I can handle my own in a fight against warriors. I'm in the inner circle of the Companions and Thane of Whiterun. If you don't think I'm trust worthy, I'm sure Delvin Mallory will speak in my favor.” 

"Delvin, huh?" Hesitantly, Astrid loosened her grip on her dagger. In a real fight, Mera thought she could probably take her on, but in such close quarters where Astrid had the home advantage, she'd rather avoid any kind of confrontation. “You've peaked my interest. But it sounds like you're offering quite a bit. Tell me, Mera, what do you want in return?” 

“Training,” Mera said frankly. “I’m decent a decent sneak, but not as good as I need to be. I want to be able to kill my enemies without them even knowing I was there.” 

Mera thought back to her infiltration on the Thalmor Embassy. If she had been a better sneak, she could have saved herself some wounds. Perhaps Malborn would even have made it out alive. 

Astrid seemed unsure, and Mera quickly took the opportunity to continue. “It would be very hard for the Companions to catch wind of jobs against any sort of assassin's should someone up top be filtering them out. And imagine the perks of having someone in a position of hire respect in the hold where your sanctuary is located. Astrid, I've heard you've hit a rough patch. I need allies, and this could help your family. We could help each other.”

Astrid looked Mera firmly in the eyes, her gaze burrowing deep within her. It was unsettling, and Mera's skin crawled with the effort it took to not look away. 

“Alright. You've convinced me. I think we could work something else. But the best way to learn is by doing. Are you willing to kill, if I ask you to?” 

Mera paused, the question settling in her mind. “I will be honest with you Astrid, I don't find this type of work honorable or preferable by any means. As per our arrangement, I will respect your leadership, but I hope you'll also respect me. I try and only kill people who deserve it. If you get any contacts on bandits, vampires, necromancers, or anything like that, I'm your girl.” 

“I think that could be arranged.” 

An easy smile spread across Astrid's face and slowly, Mera extended a hand. “Do we have a deal?” 

Astrid grasped her extended hand in a firm handshake that Mera was sure also stood for a warning.

“Don't cross us, and I'm sure the family can offer you whatever you offer it ten fold.” 

“I'm counting on it.” 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love the Dark Brotherhood questline, but to be clear, Mera is NOT the listener, or even an official member of the Brotherhood. But she does deal with them, occasionally. Allies are important to her.


End file.
